Sea Turtles along the Karnataka Coast 141

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B K Sharath

The olive ridley sea turtle is the only species of sea turtle known to nest along the coastof Karnataka (Kar and Bhaskar 1982). There are some media reports of large turtlesoccurring in the small islands off the Honnavar coast, possibly green or leatherbackturtles. The nesting of olive ridleys is sporadic along the Karnataka coast (Madhyasthaet al 1986).

From October 1984 to March 1985, the author studied the nesting frequency of oliveridleys between Mangalore and Mukka along the Karnataka coast (16 km). He establisheda hatchery at Bengre and 2,560 hatchlings were released in 1984 (Madhyastha et al1986). In 1985, the Karnataka forest department organised hatchery programmes atthree different locations, during which period a total of 15,000 hatchlings were released(Appayya 1985). According to these studies, the nesting density at Bengre in 1985 was0.75 nest/km. A market survey in 1985 also recorded 774 eggs for sale at one source inMangalore, confirming the consumption of sea turtle eggs in this area. For nearly twodecades since then, there has been no information on sea turtles from Karnataka. Thisstudy was conducted for a year, between November 2000–October 2001, to updateinformation on sea turtles and their nesting habitats along the Karnataka coast.

Study AreaThe state of Karnataka on the west coast of India has a 260-km long coastline. It’s coastlineis mostly rocky, interspersed with a few sandy beaches. The three coastal districts of thestate are: (i) Dakshina Kannada, the southern-most district, with its headquarters inMangalore, and sharing its border with the state of Kerala to the south, (ii) Udupi, a newlyformed district (which will be included as part of Dakshina Kannada in this chapter),

11

1 Extracted and modified from: B K Sharath, ‘Status survey of sea turtles along the Karnataka coast,India,’ (2003). A GOI–UNDP Project Report. University of Mysore: Department of Biosciences.

142 Marine Turtles of India

and (iii) Uttara Kannada, the northern-most district, which has a border with Goa inthe north. Several of the peninsular rivers flow into the Arabian Sea along the Karnatakacoast. Of the fifteen major rivers in Dakshina Kannada and four in Uttara Kannada thatjoin the Arabian Sea, the Nethravathi, Sharavathi and Kali are important and have largeestuaries. The mouths of the Kollur, Chakra and Haladi have substantial mangrovevegetation. Numerous fishing villages are present along the Karnataka coast and severalminor ports offer facilities to thousands of fishing boats. Most of the fishing boats aretraditional purse seine boats and a significant proportion of fishing vessels are medium-range trawlers. To support the marine fishing industry, the Karnataka coast also has aconsiderable number of ice plants and seafood processing units.

Methods

P R E L I M I N A R Y S U R V E Y

A preliminary survey was conducted to collect information from coastal inhabitants,particularly fisher folk, about sea turtle nesting locations along the coast. The surveywas based on interviews with older coastal residents. Coastal village markets were alsosurveyed during this time to check whether sea turtle eggs were being sold. Whereversea turtle eggs were observed in the market, a certain number of eggs were purchased todetermine the market price. A total of 35 locations along the coast were surveyed andinformation on sea turtle nesting was collected. During the preliminary survey, beachwalks were organised involving local college students and non government organisations;these also served to educate local youth about sea turtle conservation. During the turtlewalks conducted for two hours at dawn, crawls, nests and predated nests were counted.

N E S T I N G S U R V E Y

Based on the preliminary survey, information from 40 nesting sites, Uttara Kannada(13) and Dakshina Kannada (27), was gathered. To estimate nesting densities, threestretches of eight km each were sampled at Mangalore, Maravanthe and Murdeshwar(two in Dakshina Kannada, one in Uttara Kannada). Each stretch was sampled by ateam of five members—consisting of one local, three students and the investigator.Sampling was repeated in the first week of November and December 2000, and January2001. Hence, 24 km out of 260 km was sampled three times. Carcasses and remains ofturtles were documented along the beach and in the fishing villages.

Results

S E A T U R T L E N E S T I N G S T AT U S

Only olive ridley nesting was confirmed along the Karnataka coast during the presentsurvey. Interviews indicated that peak nesting occurred in September and October.Despite the presence of many industries, seawalls, shipping and fishing ports and coastalroads, sea turtles still nest at about 40 nesting sites close to 12 major river mouths andestuaries, some of which support mangrove forests (Table 1). In Dakshina Kannada(144 km), 12 nests were located during surveys with a nesting density of 0.25/km/surveyand an average clutch size of 98 eggs. In Uttara Kannada (116 km), only 8 nests werefound with a nesting density of 0.33/km/survey and an average clutch size of 105 eggs.

Sea Turtles along the Karnataka Coast 143

Table 1. Sea turtle nesting locations in Dakshina Kannada and Uttara Kannada districts.

Occasional nesting sites Frequent nesting sitesDakshina Kannada Uttara Kannada Dakshina Kannada Uttara Kannada

Padubidri Sirali Talapadi BhatkalHejmadi Kaikini Ullal MurdeshwaraYermal Gunavanthe Tanneeru bavi KumtaMoodubella Maki Bengre AmadalliKatpadi Karsarkod Panaboor ChandyaUdyavara Kadri Haleangadi MajaliSt Mary’s Island Gokarna PavanjeHangarakatte PangalaKota AmbalpadiVoderahobli KoteshwaraUppunda Gangolli

MaravantheKerimanjeshwaraKambadakoneSirurBainduru

S E A T U R T L E M O R T A L I T Y

Carapaces and skulls of olive ridley turtles were encountered along the coast of DakshinaKannada district. However, not many complete carcasses could be located as fisher folkremove the shells as soon as they dry. Hawksbill carapaces were also found in the housesof several fisher folk. However, it was not clear whether these shells were collectedfrom the shore or whether the turtles were hunted at sea. Most fisher folk also reportedthe sighting of a large number of adult turtle carcasses floating in the sea.

T R A D E I N T U R T L E E G G S

A total of 10 markets, six in Dakshina Kannada and four in Uttara Kannada were visitedduring the survey. Sea turtle eggs were being sold clandestinely and a total of 7,056 eggsfrom the Dakshina Kannada and 2,912 eggs from the Uttara Kannada markets werepurchased at a price of Rs 2.30 each. Of the 20 nests located during the 2000–01 survey,14 nests were predated by humans.

Threats

S E A W A L L S

The large-scale seashore erosion along the coast of Karnataka and the resultant mitigatoryresponse of building armouring structures such as seawalls is a common phenomenon.Five–eight-metre-high seawalls, 30–40 m from the low tide line, have rendered vaststretches of the Karnataka coast unsuitable for sea turtle nesting (Figures 1 and 2).

C O A S T A L R O A D S A N D I L L U M I N A T I O N

A highway runs along the Karnataka coast at a distance of 10–20 m from the high tideline (Figures 1 and 2). Fishing villages are located all along the highway, illuminated

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with sodium vapour and halogen lamps, and in some places with 1,000-watt halogenlamps directed towards the beach. Coinciding with the sea turtle nesting season duringthe winter months, the coastal communities and the fisher folk celebrate various festivals,increasing artificial illumination.

Despite being heavily impacted by seawalls, coastal roads, ports and industries, anddense human settlements, the Karnataka coast still harbours important sea turtle nestingsites wherever sandy, undisturbed nesting beaches occur. These nesting sites aremonitored by fishing communities to harvest the eggs which generate supplementaryincome. Both religious sentiments and awareness of the Indian Wildlife (Protection)Act, 1972 prevents the killing of adult sea turtles. However, harvesting of eggs appearsto be intensive. Predation by domestic and feral dogs and consumption of turtle eggs bycoastal-dwellers are major threats to the olive ridley population on this coast. The offshoremortality of adult turtles combined with the impact of removal of eggs may result in thecomplete loss of sea turtles along the Karnataka coast.

The seawalls along the coast do not leave much nesting habitat for the turtles. Therefore,it is important to identify all sporadic nesting sites and develop a mechanism by whichthese nests can be saved from predation. The hatchery programmes operated earlier bythe Karnataka forest department may need to be re-established with active communityparticipation. Rajagopalan et al (1996) recorded fishery-related mortality of sea turtleson the Karnataka coast which, though minimal, is still prevalent, as indicated by oliveridley and hawksbill carapaces.

Figure 1. Uttara Kannada; olive ridley nesting sites are depicted with an arrow.

Sea Turtles along the Karnataka Coast 145

Conservation Management

The involvement of local people in turtle walks and a nest protection programme duringthe survey reflects a positive attitude towards the conservation of sea turtles (Sharath2001). There is a need to conduct education and awareness programmes for local schoolteachers, nature clubs in schools and colleges and in coastal villages. Such programmesalso need to include the upcoming naval base near Karwar, and port, fisheries and statehighway officials. There are a large number of NGOs on the Karnataka coast, most ofthem working with coastal fishing communities. These coastal NGOs needs to bebrought into a network to participate in sea turtle conservation.

Figure 2. Dakshina Kannada; olive ridley nesting sites are depicted with an arrow.

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Acknowledgements

This study was funded by the GOI–UNDP Sea Turtle Project, with the help of theWildlife Institute of India and Ministry of Environment and Forests. I would like tothank Jack Frazier and Kartik Shanker for their valuable suggestions and help. I alsothank P C Chakravorty, chief wildlife warden, Karnataka forest department forpermission and logistical support, and the deputy conservators of forests, Mangalore,Coondapur, Honnavar and Karwar for their support during fieldwork. This study wasalso supported locally by the fishing communities and I am thankful to Yogesh andCharles Paul of Mangalore, Urala of Saligrama, and Dr. Malli of Coondapur. Myrespectful thanks to S N Hegde, Vice Chancellor, University of Mysore, and Y Dongre,director of Hemagangothri for their support and permission. I thank my wife Savithaand son Amogha for their endurance during the course of the fieldwork.

Literature Cited

Appayya M K. 1985. Sea turtle conservation with particular reference to Karnataka. My forest21(2): 89–90.

Kar, C S, and S Bhaskar.1982. Status of sea turtles in the eastern Indian ocean. In Biology andconservation of sea turtles, ed. K Bjorndal. Washington D C: Smithsonian Institution Press. 365–372.

Madhyastha M N, B K Sharath, and I J Rao. 1986. Preliminary studies on marine turtlehatchery at Bengre beach, Mangalore. Mahasagar 19(2):137–140.

Rajagopalan, M, E Vivekanandan, S K Pillai, M Srinath, and A Bastion Fernando. 1996.Incidental catch of sea turtles in India. Marine Fisheries Information Services T & E Series. 143:8–16.

Sharath, B K. 2001. Status survey of marine turtles along the coast of Karnataka. In Proceedingsof the National Workshop for the Development of a National Sea Turtle Conservation Action Plan,Bhubaneshwar, Orissa, ed. K Shanker and B C Choudhury. Dehradun: Wildlife Institute ofIndia. 77.